A Final Goodbye
by frizzle1872
Summary: The group is going to miss the little girl so much and each has a story showing that her short, twelve years on Earth changed them...
1. Shane: Words

**A\N Hey there! So this is yet another Walking Dead story from me! **

**Woo!**

**So this is basically a story told by each character in every chapter on how Sophia changed them and their life! This has probably been done, but whateves! **

**When I saw 'Pretty Much Dead Already', I cried. **

**Poor Carol! But Daryl will help her so it's all cool!**

**Let's begin shall we?**

_**Shane**_

Shane Walsh was never a man who was good with words. In fact, he hated saying them. He knew he'd fuck things up with words and most of the time he did. So when the little girl needed words the most, why did Shane feel obliged to give them to her?

She was alone, Carl was nowhere in sight. Shane had just been circling the perimeter for walkers when he noticed the little blonde waiting for something. He strutted to her, gun in hand and placed himself next to her.

"Hey Sophia what are you doin'?" He questioned her, looking for her eyes, but only to find them spaced far about the hills. She looked so peaceful, her blonde hair was slightly moving on her small face and her petite, delicate hands were grasping something Shane couldn't see. Her eyes finally moved until they met Shane's.

"Oh, hi Shane," She whispered, as if her voice could damage something. Shane stared at her for a moment before replying.

"What are you doin'?" He repeated, his curiosity creeping up slowly. Sophia blinked at him as if she couldn't interpret his words. She breathed heavily, looking out again.

"I...like the silence..."

"Sometimes silence isn't a good thing," Shane said, looking out at the hills as Sophia had. He wanted to see what she saw, but all he could see was death and destruction. He wondered what she was thinking, just looking out, but he didn't ask, instead he waited for a response.

"My...my daddy died last night...I was so scared 'cause..." She said, trailing off while looking terribly guilty. Her serene expression had melted away, but she was still focused on the landscape before her.

"Your daddy was a piece of shit," Shane chuckled, shaking his head. Sophia turned to him, her face gone rotten.

"My daddy was flawed, but he wasn't a piece of 'shit'," She hissed.

"Watch your mouth little girl," Shane warned. She turned back, glaring.

"I'll watch mine if you watch yours,"

Shane wanted to retort, but he knew that was enough of that. So instead he sprawled his long legs in front of him and scanned the area before him. The sun was creeping down on the rolling hills and the place was so vast, but he knew it was time to leave...the walkers came and Jim, Jim was going to die...He looked at Sophia, studying her plain features. The sun cast a shadow on her as well, that made her seem wise beyond her years. She was breathing a little faster than normal, but kept a seemingly well-balanced look to her features.

"I was scared," Sophia whispered into the air suddenly, "Because I was relieved," Shane's head sharply turned to see tears in her eyes. "Daddy was so mean to mommy...he hurt her everyday...I want mommy to be happy and now that daddy's dead she can be..." Shane smiled gently and nodded his head.

"Don't be scared..." He soothed awkwardly, trying to find the right set of words for this, "I won't take back what I said about your daddy, but you shouldn't lie about it, you said yourself, he hurt your mother and no one deserves that," Sophia sniffled a bit, the sun disappearing so Shane could barely make out the tears streaming down her face.

"Why does Carl get to have such a nice daddy like Rick and I was stuck with mine..." She muttered, looking down at her lap. Shane cocked his head and furrowed his brows.

"I don't know..."

"Mommy says God has a reason for everything, but was God's reason right?" She questioned rhetorically into the cool air. The sun was almost completely gone, but Shane could still see the faint etch of distaste in her face.

"Maybe God has something bigger planned for your Momma than you're givin' him credit for," Shane pointed out, with a slight shrug of his shoulders. Sophia took that into consideration as they sat in a strangely comfortable silence.

"You think so?"

"Your momma took years of violence from Ed, a couple of damn walkers ain't gonna take her down," He smiled, reassuringly. Sophia brightened at this, and before the sun was completely absent to the sky, Shane saw a glimpse of her bright smile...one he would rarely ever see again.

Shane was standing at the base of Sophia's grave looking down on the dirt rolling off of it. Shane shook his head. "Little girl, I'm sorry for givin' up on you. I was bein' selfish, just wantin' Lori and Carl to myself, just neglecting your needs...I'm sorry God didn't have a bigger plan for you, but I know he has one for your momma. And, I'm sorry for just leavin' you, and lettin' Rick go after you...I should have been the one to rescue you...but instead I was the ass who let you die. You don't know how sorry I am, Little girl, but I just want you to forgive me for bein' selfish. I'm so so sorry, Sophia,"

Shane left the grave feeling the heavy weight on his shoulders deepen and the hurt in his heart grow worse.

Sophia just needed a little bit more time to forgive him.

**A\N So I hope you liked it! Please review and tell me what you think and please tell me who's story you want next!**


	2. Andrea: Sister

**A\N I am a little disheartened to see I have no reviews, but I did get some alerts, so if you like this chapter, or if you don't tell me :)**

**Please :D**

**Now, since I didn't get any suggestions on who you wanted this chapter's person to be, I chose!**

**So here you are! Enjoy! ^.^**

_**Andrea**_

Amy was everything.

Sweet, caring, smart, patient, funny, and understanding.

She was everything Andrea wasn't, that's why she cherished every moment she had with her sister. Every laugh, fight, word, memory.

But Amy was ripped away from her, torn from her hands so quickly, with such ease.

That girl—that Sophia, she was Amy in many ways and maybe that was what Andrea craved in this God forsaken world...

Andrea's heart was stone cold as she walked away from her sister's dead, lifeless, zombified body that day, not caring for the sympathy or words the others had. Her sister was gone, her baby sister, the one she helped raise, the one she defended...the one she neglected...she was gone.

She was sitting in her tent staring at a picture of her and Amy hugging the life out of each other, their smiles lighting up the whole background and their bodies molding into each other like they belonged. Her tears were stuck inside her eyes, refusing to fall once more as her body ached just gazing upon the picture. She heard a slight rustle in her tent and saw Sophia, her head slightly cocked, just studying Andrea.

"What do you want?" Andrea hissed, the comment coming out slightly sharper than intended. Sophia didn't look taken aback, rather just as distressed and heart-broken as her. Andrea then reflected on the past six hours and remembered, Sophia lost her father...she lost someone too.

"Amy was my friend...she was really nice to me," Sophia whispered into the seemingly unforgiving tent. Andrea stared for a second before comprehending her words completely.

"She was nice to everyone..." Andrea trailed, wishing she had spent more time with her sister, but now she couldn't.

"I've always wanted a sister," Sophia commented, "But every time I asked if Momma was to have another child, Daddy always said no 'cause he didn't want to feed another mouth...all my friends at school had brothers and sisters, you know. But they always complained, sayin' they were gross and mean and slobbery and they always fought. I guess I got mad 'cause I always wanted to do that with a sibling. I don't like bein' alone. 'Specially since it's just me and Mommy,"

Andrea must have gawked at Sophia's bold statement for the longest time before a meek, almost inaudible choked laugh escaped her lips. She sniffled, trying to control her emotions, but soon her laughter turned into broken down sobs that were racking through her body as she realized her sister was really gone. She felt so alone at the moment, broken and utterly useless at that moment, just sitting in her bright tent in front of an impressionable little girl.

"Are you sad?" Andrea managed to squeeze out, "That your dad died?" Sophia has a look of utter confusion on her face before she looked at Andrea dead in the eye.

"N-no...I guess not, Daddy was cruel to Mommy, and just to people in general. I mean, he was my dad, but why should I feel bad that he's gone?" She muttered, shaking her head disdainfully. Andrea calmed her breathing a bit.

"I don't feel like that...Amy and I were so close. She was so special to me. I never wanted to lose her," She confessed, sighing deeply.

"Amy tickled me," Sophia whispered, letting the words etch themselves into the air.

"So? Amy tickled me all the time and I tickled her all the time," Andrea scoffed, trying to scope out the importance in her words. She heard a muffled gasp come from the little girl as she stepped closer to her.

"I was never tickled before. I didn't know what she was doing at first. I thought she was tryin' to get somethin' off of me or to hit me. I was scared, but I didn't understand why I was laughin'," Her words were chortled and disoriented, but the feelings were there. Andrea felt tears come to her eyes as the little girl tried to calm her breathing. "Daddy hit me on my stomach a lot, he said it was a good thing, that I was bein' bad and I deserved it, so when she touched my stomach, I was so afraid...but when she explained it to me...I wanted her to tickle me again,"

"She loved bein' tickled," Andrea smiled.

"I really miss her 'cause she was like a sister to me..." Sophia breathed, carefully selecting her words. Andrea shook her head lightly.

"I'm not as sweet as Amy, or as kind," She began, sitting up.

"I think you are," Sophia answered, raising her head high, "You're not as easy-goin' as Amy, or as easy to get along with...but you have something Amy didn't," Andrea advanced towards the little girl and stared for an answer. "You have bravery and control and I think that's really important," Andrea felt more tears well up in her eyes and finally, she grasped her thin shoulders and embraced her small frame. She felt the little one melt into her grasp.

"Do you think I could ever be like a sister to you?" Andrea questioned, pulling away for a second and staring into her bright blue eyes. Sophia beamed up at her.

"You already are," With that, Sophia's face was smushed back into Andrea's stomach.

~ . ~

Andrea looked at the grave stone that was made especially for Sophia and felt tears stream down her face, not letting her forget. "Great," She muttered, letting it sink into the air, letting the dirt and the blazing sun absorb the simple word. "Now I've lost two sisters,"

**A\N I hope you liked it! I like this one better than Shane's...because I hate Shane :D Please review and tell me who you want next! ^.^**


	3. TDog: Memories

**A\N WOO HOO! I'm loved! :D **

**Thank you for the really nice reviews! And as requested, this time around is T-Dog! ^.^**

**To ResidentGoth, I understand where you're coming from, but I have someone else in mind for last, and I think you know who, but Daryl is definitely going to be next to last!**

**And to vmg, thank you for the suggestion, this chapter is for you! :D**

**And to Seretheil96, thank you for the overall amazing comment! It made me crazy happy!**

**Also to jaded79 thank you for the comment! I love Daryl and Carol's and I CANNOT wait to write theirs! :D**

**Now let's go on, shall we?**

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Walking Dead, although if I did, Carol and Daryl would have been together by now! ;)**

_**T-Dog**_

For T-Dog, in this stupid, fucked up world, their was very little to cherish and be grateful for...well, at least for him. The walkers immediately took his girlfriend away, then his parents and pretty soon everyone else was gone.

And he was left.

He always tried to think of good times, happiness, love, but he repeatedly came up short. He just kept picturing the walkers, ripping the love of his life to shreds and taking his happiness with them as they wandered off, just leaving him behind, and he often wondered if he was just meant to survive this world without a family.

T-Dog sat quietly, feeling remorse for Jaquie as they traveled along, through the bumpy roads to Fort Benning, silently seething. Sophia walked, or rather bounced over to him with a quizzical look on her face.

"T-Dog?" She questioned, her voice light and fluttery. He almost missed it, but his head popped up and his eyes met her huge, lively blue ones.

"What?" He asked, watching her as she took a seat in front of him. The RV kept tumbling it's way through as Sophia kept her eyes trained on him.

"Why do you look so sad?" Sophia moved her head to one side for emphasis and she waited patiently for his answer. He almost scoffed at such an innocent word.

_Sad_.

This world was so much deeper, than sad. He shook his head and sighed.

"I just have a memory in my head,"

"What kind of memory?" She looked at him expectantly, urging him on as he tried to fit the words as nicely as he could.

"I just keep thinking about Jaquie and what she said, 'bout what Jenner said. Maybe I should have stayed, too. I hate bein' in this world, just witnessing deaths and seeing destruction and gloom. All I can ever think about his hate and anger now, I can't even remember the last time I even had a genuine laugh," Sophia thought about this, just pondering the very idea. She seemed a lot older in that moment to T-Dog as she sat quietly. He wanted it all to be gone, the pain, but he wanted it to be painless like Jenner had suggested.

"Hey T-Dog?" He lifted his head when the long-awaited response finally made it's debut.

"Yeah?"

"When was the first time you ever had hot-chocolate?" She questioned, with a slight smile on her face. He caught himself staring at her after a few moments, and tried to rack through his head to find this time. His eyes swept over Sophia as she was gazing out, looking so serene, and peaceful. He focused on his task and eventually found his memory.

"I was in sixth grade, like you," He started with a small grin, "It was the coldest winter for us I could remember. I ran inside with my friends and my mom was at the counter waiting for us. She was an impatient woman, you know? So we were kinda scared. She eyed us for a moment, before giving us these cups full of smoky air and chocolate dripping down the sides and she left. We looked at them for the longest time before I was finally brave enough to try it. So I picked it up, gave one last look to my friends and dipped my head back. It was the most delicious thing I have ever tasted in my life. I urged them to try it and they did too. We had Momma make for us all the time," He realized he was rambling so he meekly shut his mouth to stop the words and to close down his smile. Sophia giggled happily at this and pretty soon T-Dog joined in.

"Your Momma sounded nice," She commented. T-Dog nodded in agreement as his smile returned.

"Yeah, Momma was the best. She wouldn't go for half-assed, you know? She wanted you to do the best you could. She was kind and really smart, she graduated college, the first in her family, then it was me, and she was the best dancer I ever met in my life," He finally stopped the talking as he realized he hadn't talked about Momma like that in weeks.

"Whenever I'm sad, I always think about my favorite memory and I just think about for days

til I feel better. T-Dog you don't need to feel sad. When people die, they look over you and they are happy. You need to be happy, too," She sighed, looking out a window, "My favorite memory was when I flew my first kite. It went so high, and it was so bright out. It was pink with blue butterflies on it. It was the greatest, but now it's gone. But when I think about how happy I was at that moment, I get real happy and all my worries go away," She smiled brightly, her face turning a glowing color took over her face and features instead of that sickly pale color.

"How are you twelve and you're smarter than me?" T-Dog asked, a light chuckle in his voice. Sophia smiled and giggled shyly.

"Your Momma, she's dead, isn't she?" She quietly asked, look down. T-Dog gazed over her, his heart feeling warmer than it was before, a strange sensation was filling him.

"Yeah, but not in my memories," He said, tears clumping in his eyes. This time he wouldn't let them fall.

~ . ~

Two days, just two days after Sophia's death, T-Dog was sitting in the RV wishing she was in front of him again, smiling and filling him with memories and love. Instead, he had yet another memory. This time Sophia wasn't smiling brightly at him and speaking such wise, majestic words for her age. She was stumbling out of a barn as a walker, wanting to eat him rather than comfort him.

That was the memory he hated the most.

**A\N Thank for the reviews! Please review again and tell me what you liked about this chapter and who you want next time! I hope you liked this one!**

**'Til next time! ;)**


	4. Dale: Age

**A\N Hey! ^.^ I'm so happy for all the reviews! :D**

**To Serethiel96, Thank you! I miss when T-Dog had a story line, so hopefully he has a part in the next episode! Thank you! I wasn't sure if it was emotional, but thanks!^.^**

**To jaded79, Thanks! Wow, thank you! I was a little afraid of writing for him because we didn't get much on his back story, but thanks! And, this chapter is for you! Thanks for suggesting! :D**

**And to CriminalMindsWhore, First, I love the name! XD Second, thank you! I liked Andrea's chapter as well, but my favorite so far is T-Dog's! :)**

**Also to Morgan-Eats-Cannibals, Well it's nice to know you're ridding the world of cannibals ^.^ Second, thank you! Hopefully I can get these out as quickly as I can! :D**

**Here it is!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own The Walking Dead, if I did, Sophia would be alive and well :')**

_**Dale**_

There were so many things in his life that he did wrong. Dale hated himself every time he recommitted those stupid acts of wrong-doings, but he seemed to never learn. He wanted to recreate himself, to be someone new and not the big fuck up he was.

But a zombie apocalypse was not a place to do so.

Dale was sitting absent absentmindedly on a lawn chair leisurely, wanting this world to end and just reflecting on his life, for the millionth time it seemed. It was just the break of dawn so most were still sleeping soundly. He was off in a vast distance until he heard rustling. Panic struck his heart as he instinctively grabbed his shotgun next to him. Sophia then emerged from the woods with a basket containing miscellaneous berries quite calmly until she saw a gun directed to her ready to fire at any moment. She let out a sharp gasp and nearly dropped the berries.

"Sophia, I'm sorry," He sheepishly apologized, and set his gun down. Her chest heaved in and out as she approached him cautiously before setting the basket down and sat down in a crumpled heap on the seat next to him. She sighed a bit catching her breath.

"It's fine, you didn't mean to," Her words were soft and meek like she was still a bit shaken up from their encounter. Dale eyed her for a moment then formulated his question in his mind before he spoke it in a calm tone.

"Why are you up so late?" She seemed to ponder this for a few minutes and finally had an answer.

"I was out pickin' berries for Daddy," Sophia explained, gesturing to the basket. "What 'bout you?" Dale took this into consideration as he really didn't have a reason.

"Well," He began, sorting through his problems, "I was mostly thinkin' of my life. Of how much of it I took for granted. Of how much of it I screwed up and how many people I hurt durin' it. You're so young Sophia, you have so much to experience and to learn. Me, me I'm done. I can't try to fix myself now, I'm who I am and I will never be good," Dale stopped, hearing that his voice was cracked, broken, and defeated. He hung his head in shame as he reflected again, reflected on his worst moments, that being one of them. Sophia looked at him for the longest time with eyes filled with compassion rather than judgment.

"Dale...how old are you?" She questioned, scooting a bit closer to the old man. He raised his head slightly, just enough to look in her young,spacious eyes.

"Sixty-Four," He replied, brushing this off as unimportant. She studied him longer before shaking her head contemptuously.

"Stop it, Dale," She snapped, her tone harsh and pointed. This startled Dale as his head arose quickly and his mouth was agape as his eyes were broad with awe. "You're actin' my age and you're three times it!" She quieted herself for a minute, then continued in a hushed, but fierce tone, "You're actin' really selfish and wantin' everyone to take pity on you!"

"I am, aren't I?" He asked rhetorically, feeling himself break down just a bit. "I've just made so many mistakes in my life and I feel as though I'm too old to recreate myself...for a makeover..." He admitted, not caring whether her anger who arise again. This time he said it for himself, not for her.

"No you aren't. You can always fix yourself. Always," Sophia whispered. "You are good, Dale. My dad...he isn't. He can't fix himself. There's somethin' deep inside him that's rotten and evil. He hits Mommy 'cause she's been bad even though she hasn't, and he hits me, too. Daddy isn't good like you. You can make yourself into a role model, or someone to rescue others, but some people can't..." She sniffled, as her tears were rolling on her shirt and shorts, "Daddy can't...and Daddy won't..." Dale gazed at her, not knowing what to say. He was in complete and utter shock, awe, or whatever you wanted to call it, he was in it.

"How do you know that?" He queried, looking at her for a moment, then looking down.

"I don't. If you did somethin' really bad, like Daddy then maybe you can't be fixed...but this isn't the world anymore, so maybe you can change...or pretend,"

"I neglected..." Dale said shakily, "I-I neglected my wife for years. She had cancer, you know. And she was fine with it, she knew she was to die and she was okay with it. But I wasn't. I ignored her feelings, her proposals—everything. I didn't want to hear it. My excuse was that I loved her so much that I couldn't let her go, but I was so blind by desperation, I didn't see that my wife, my _wife_ had fallen out of love with me. She was gone, she slipped away...all because I couldn't stand to be without her...but she had learned to live without me...while she was with me..." Sophia had tears in here eyes just as Dale did at that moment as his words were caught in his throat as if he didn't pour them out, wanting to rid them forever.

"That doesn't mean you're bad! And that doesn't mean you're wrong!" Sophia shouted as quietly as she could. She was standing at this point, making a statement with her eyes close and cheeks red as the horizon. "It means you were scared! It means you were doing something for yourself, and for the people who loved her as well. You can't think that you're bad because you wanted to hold on to somethin' you love! It just makes you human!" Her words struck Dale like lightening. They burned of truth, purity, and desperation.

"She's gone now..." Dale trailed, remembering the day when his beautiful wife left him. Her face was a sickly pale color and her body was frail and petite. She looked happy that she could leave this hell-hole...and the world was perfectly in tact then. Now Dale was isolated, alienate in this cruel world alone, forgotten and so terribly guilty.

"Don't let that stop you. You're still perfectly good. You can still help someone...you are never too old to help someone, to recreate _them," _She breathed with such passion, it made her seem like a speaker rather than a twelve year old. "Dale, your regrets, your mistakes, they're part of you and you have to live with that part everyday. So instead of pushin' it away, embrace it. It's always going to be there. So live with it!" He felt the tears erupt again as he shook his head.

"For your age, you're the smartest person I've ever met in my life," She picked up the berries and handed Dale a few. He took them gratefully as she began to head to her mother's tent.

"You helped me, Dale," She verbalized softly, "Now I know when I get older, I'm going to be just like you and fight for who I love," She walked away until she vanished into the tent and after a couple of rustles, there was complete and utter...

Silence.

Dale felt more tears fall down his face and soak into his wrinkled skin. This time he didn't care why he was crying.

The berries were sweet.

And her words stuck with him.

~ . ~

Dale whimpered quietly as Sophia's grave was plain, right in front of him. "I'm a wretched man, Sophia. I got to live to 64 and you...you were so promisin'...and you were twelve," He shook his head and exhaled while his eyes explored the farm before him. "Your mother, I promise you is going to be happy and me...I'm not going to recreate just a single person. I'm going to change the whole group. I may be an old man, but I can still do a lot," He wanted a response...he _ached_ for a response, but when he received none, he walked off with one final thought. "Age...has no limits,"

But just a few days after, God proved to him that his chance to see if he could fix the group was a failure. Instead, he was gone, with Sophia both taken away with so much left to live for.

**A\N So I thought it was kind of weak, but if you liked it, please tell me! Please tell me who you want next time! ^.^ **

**So jaded79, did you like the chapter? I hope you did!**

**Have a nice day ya'll!**

**'Til next time! ^.^**


	5. Glenn: Superhero

**A\N Hey there! Thanks for all the reviews again ^.^ They make me super happy!**

**So to jaded79, I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter! Thank you, yeah I think someone maybe not Sophia, but I think someone helped him realize that the group was losing their shit :D **

**To Serethiel96, Thanks! Right now I'm on Spring Break, so I'm writing as much as I can! I love writing this story, so thank you! Thank you, I'm going to miss Dale so much as well :'( **

**Also to Morgan-eats-cannibals, Haha, I didn't cry, but I really miss Dale! Sorry, this chapter isn't Carl...yet :)**

**And to Salvatore, Hello new comer! :D Thank you, Dale was definitely one of my favorites too...and now he's gone :'( Well you got your wish, I hope you like this chapter! :)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own The Walking Dead or any of its fabulous characters! :)**

**Question: Who is your favorite Walking Dead character? Mine are Carol and Daryl obviously followed closely by Lori and Dale :)**

**Here we go! :D**

_**Glenn**_

Glenn was no superhero. He always wanted to be. Even when he was a pizza deliverer he always pretended that those people depended on him, that they needed that pizza or they would suffer greatly and die a horrible death. Well now they were all gone, every person he ever knew...

And he didn't save a single one.

Glenn was silently sitting within the cool air as the others were burning the bodies, the corpses of their dead companions. Glenn couldn't bear to watch as their once lively, happy friends were turning into thick, moggy piles of ash. He turned his head to the right direction and caught himself staring at a grueling sight. Carol was stabbing, _slaughtering_, Ed's head before reanimation occurred, and as Glenn watched, his stomach became queasy and he had a pretty good feeling Ed wasn't going to change any time soon. He quickly whipped his head in any other direction than that, and saw Sophia making her way to her mother. He felt fear seer through his scrawny body, and ran to Sophia and enveloped her into a hug which he eventually directed over to a near-by tree, out of sight off Ed's death.

"Glenn!" Sophia whined, pulling away from his grasp. Her face was angry and her tone had turned exceptionally sour. Glenn backed off and caught his breath.

"Sorry, it's just your mom is—and your dad—and yeah I just didn't want you to...see..." He gasped. He wasn't one for sports, or for any physical activity at all. Sophia shrugged, looking of for a moment.

"It's fine, I know Daddy's gone, I was just seein' if Jim was okay," She answered, looking up at him. She cocked her head for a moment, then smiled. "That's a cool shirt," Glenn didn't comprehend what she has giggled for a moment, until it registered in his mind and he quickly observed his shirt. The Superman logo was clearly paraded on the front with a blue background emphasizing it nicely.

"Oh," He mumbled dumbly. He blinked. "Thanks," Sophia gazed over to where Daryl gently took the ax away from Carol as she stared mournfully at her husband. Sophia looked utterly confused to Glenn as her eyes averted back to him.

"I've seen dead bodies before," She pointed out, brushing it off as unimportant. Glenn gawked, seemingly surprised at this rather forward and bold statement.

"I guess I just wanted to preserve some of your childhood, or at least what you have left of it," He muttered, his 'small act of kindness' feeling rather miniscule and demolished. She stared at his shirt once again, not breaking her eyes away until her face brightened.

"I remember watching Superman, he was really cool," She cheered, smiling a bit. Glenn studied his shirt closely remembering everything he put that poor, devastated shirt through. He felt out shown by the shirt, once again feeling unimportant and a huge loser wearing the shirt that had more importance and value than him. "Hey Glenn?" Sophia asked quietly.

"Yeah?"

"What did you do before the zombies came?" She questioned lightly, her eyes shining with curiosity.

"I was a pizza deliverer and superhero extraordinaire," He joked. Sophia's eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"What's that?" She looked up at him expectantly.

"It means in high school I didn't get laid," He stated, in a monotone voice, replacing his usually chipper voice. Sophia looked at him for a second then her eyes were directed to the ground below them.

"Glenn, are you sad, now?" He took this into consideration, reflecting on what happened in the past month. He wasn't exactly content with his life before, and this wasn't a cherry on top of everything, but he wouldn't say sad, more distressed than anything.

"My parents were looking for a straight A student, an athletic young man, and they were expecting me to graduate with some sort of scholarship, but instead they had me. I had straight C's, I was in no sports or after school activities, and I didn't graduate with any scholarships, so they were disappointed. That's not why I was so sad when life wasn't overrun with zombies. I was sad because I knew I could never do any better than where I was at that moment. I wasn't going to be spectacular or great and I was never going to do something amazing like they had hoped. That's why I was sad. I'm just below average...and that's all I'll ever be," He realized what he had spilled to the little girl, but he felt strangely better as she deciphered his words. She had a look of indifference on her face before she finally opened her mouth.

"So you think you need to acquire special skills just to be noticed and loved and accepted?" She asked, twisting his words. "Glenn, maybe you already are a hero. You just don't need a cape to prove it," Her words were mature and aged although her voice was squeaky with a childish complexion.

"I feel like I'm not strong or clever enough to save someone from_ anything_," He admitted, feeling worthless. His eyes shimmered with tears, but they didn't fall.

They never did.

"So what? Some heroes aren't super strong or fast," Sophia argued, "Mommy is _my_ hero. She isn't super fast, or can read minds. She's normal, but she still saves me everyday. When I'm sad, she comforts me, and when I'm sick, she makes me go to bed and feeds me soup that makes me feel really warm inside. She makes me feel smart and important everyday. That's what a hero should be. Not super strong and fast," Sophia ran out of breath as her chest heaved with her argument fresh in it. Glenn took what she said and compared it to his life.

Had he ever saved anyone like that?

"My sister," He whispered to her, "She wasn't talking because some kids teased her. She wouldn't smile, laugh, or talk because they said they didn't care if she didn't speak again. My parents loved her so much, and tried to make her happy, but she wouldn't budge. Finally they let me see her and I told her that a special force told me that she was going to laugh. At first she was confused...but then she just smiled and then she laughed," Tears dotted his eyes as a small smile creeped up on his face, "I thought it was so insignificant, but she told me that she felt so much better after that,"

"You matter," Sophia stated, with a nod of her head. Glenn nodded in a agreement.

"Yeah, I do," Pretty soon he felt something on his cheek. Something wet. He looked up at the sky expecting dark clouds popping up at him until he realized the scintillant sky wasn't the cause of the precipitation on his cheeks. He was. That was the first time in Glenn's life he had ever cried. His eyes always watered, but they never felt the need to splurge tears, but at that moment, the tears felt good. So he pulled Sophia close to him and hugged her tightly, not wanting to forget the tears and the fact that at that moment, Sophia was his hero.

~ . ~

Glenn walked to Sophia's grave after he made it back with Rick and Hershel from the bar expedition. He felt totally and utterly worthless at that moment, chickening out there. He had someone to protect and how was he supposed to protect her if he couldn't save himself?

"Sophia, I'm sorry," Glenn started, feeling tears water up in his eyes, "Daryl was more of a hero to you than I was...and now he's takin' real good care of Carol. And what have I done? I was so intent on winning Maggie that I basically forgot about you? How—how long were you out there? Scared, hungry?" Tears streamed down his pale face. "I feel so awful and you, you were amazing and now you're gone and this group—we're fallin' 'part. Sophia, right now I think we need God, not a hero and I'm not that hero," He tearfully walked away and into the loving arms of Maggie.

Right now, she's his only hero.

**A\N Yay! I hope you liked it! Please review and tell me what you thought and who you want next.**

**Also please tell me who your favorite character is ^.^**

**See ya!**


	6. Lori: Perfection

**A\N Hey all! So Spring Break is officially over for me, so I will have homework, school, and extra-curricular activities to tend to :) **

**Yay! More reviews! :D**

**To Serethiel96, Haha, thanks. I kind of wanted Glenn to protect my eyes when she beat his head in too! O.O I love Daryl and Carol, they are too cute! Actually, I just saw a picture of them for 'Beside the Dying Fire' with her arms wrapped around him as they were both on his motorcycle! AHHH ^.^**

**And to jaded79, I think that my mom is my hero, too. She means the world to me and she does all things that I could see Carol doing :) Daryl is my favorite too, and I totally see where you're coming from if you don't want them together, I just prefer that they are :)**

**Finally to Morgan-Eats-Cannibals, Yeah, I felt so bad for him. I don't really like Maggie as a person, but she and Glenn are cute together ^.^**

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Walking Dead or any of it's characters :P**

**Question: What did you think of 'Better Angels'?**

**Okay, here you go! ^.^**

_**Lori**_

In all the years that Lori had been on this Earth, she felt like she had nothing to be grateful for. She had a great life growing up, amazing friends, a husband, a beautiful baby boy, and a wonderful home. She was proud of these things, she was happy, but somehow, she couldn't bring herself to be grateful. Her life seemed to scream out 'Perfect', but she knew something others didn't.

They didn't know how broken and messed up Lori actually was.

Lori's chest was breathing erratically as she circled into the showers and kneeled down. She reverberated what had happened with Shane in the play room of the seemingly perfect CDC, she felt tears roll down her cheeks in pure agony. She was more than terrified, but she knew she couldn't tell Rick, so she tried to compose herself once again, but failed miserably. This action repeated a few more times until it was interrupted by a small grunt. Lori's head quickly arose and found Sophia looking quizzically upon her.

"Lori?" She questioned, looking genuinely frightened. It was the kind of frightened that you wouldn't see in a horror movie, but in a drama film. The one that filled Sophia's face with such discontent. "Are you okay?" Those words had been uttered to Lori so many times, but this time was the first she had ever answered them truthfully.

"No," She managed to choke out, "No, I'm not. I tried my hardest to be perfect for Rick, a-and for Carl, but I messed up. I really really messed up," Tears flooded her eyes and ran down her cheeks. Sophia stared at her, not uttering a single word. Finally she inhaled deeply and furrowed her brows.

"Why do you have to be perfect? Wouldn't Rick love you no matter how imperfect you are?" Lori had to laugh at such a simple, naïve question. This was so much more than just Rick...

This was _her._

"I made up my whole personality," She confessed, hanging her head in shame, having her hair fall in perfect harmony with it, cascading until it reached her knees. She couldn't look into Sophia's precious eyes as she said this. "I was so ashamed of myself. I hated how I laughed, how I cried, how I controlled my anger, even my look. I changed myself, because I hated the real Lori. I hated _me._ I became this perfect woman, so that I didn't have to face how awful I am. I'm rarely angry, my laugh is a simple giggle, when I cry I hide it, and my look—I had very short, blonde hair, but I dyed it,"

"Why? You're so pretty," Sophia commented, knowing this wasn't the end of this Lori.

"Because!" She cried out loud, "When I was in elementary, I had glasses and I was chubby...and I had the biggest crush on Rick. He didn't even notice me and my name—my name wasn't Lori, it was Rowan. I overheard these popular girls saying that Rick liked brunettes with long hair. They had to be tall and skinny. So I dyed my hair, grew it out, joined dance, lost weight, and started going by Lori. He didn't recognize me once we hit high school, and we instantly fell in love...but if he knew that I was a fraud, _me_ a_ person_, a fraud. He'd hate me and reject me and I would lose him," Sophia frowned at this, looking Lori square in the face.

"If Rick really, really loves you, then he'll stay with you," Lori shook head and smiled although it faltered just as quickly as she formed it. It was watery and fake and she hated herself at that moment.

"Carl needs a perfect mom—a role model and if I was Rowan, he wouldn't have that," Sophia's eyes narrowed.

"Or he would! You think that just because you're pretty and skinny now that you're perfect? That you're a role model? A role model is someone who loves themselves no matter how they look! You're not a role model! You're far from it!" Sophia ran a hand through her hair while feeling tears of her own in her eyes. Lori was shocked by the outburst of the usually quiet and soft-spoken Sophia.

"Sophia..." She started, reaching out to her. Sophia smacked her hand away.

"Don't," She growled, "I look at Mommy everyday and you know what I see? I see a woman in her thirties who doesn't look like you or Andrea. She looks fifty, because Daddy wore her out. He made her sad, and he made her stress. You stretch your problems, Lori! My Mommy never changed who she was, because she was perfectly happy on where she is! Being perfect is necessary! And if that's what you're worried about, then you're just as fake as a barbie," Lori felt sobs rack through her body as she realized this little girl, this twelve year old knew more than Lori did. She knew...she knew...

"I slept with Shane because I was lonely...at that moment I knew I was never going to be perfect. I was a terrible person. I still hate myself. And everyday when I see Rick and Carl look at me with their faces full of love and affection, guilt just courses through me," Sophia didn't have anything to say to that as she watched Lori calm herself down. She depended on the floors to soak in her tears, to wipe away any trace that she was there.

"No one can be perfect, Lori," Sophia whispered almost inaudibly, "You just have to make tiny steps into being better. You're not a bad person. You've just made many mistakes...you have to push through and keep trying," Lori grabbed Sophia and cried into her for the longest time, just needing her comfort and wisdom for a few more minutes. Then she'd let her go, and pretend that it never had happened.

But she just couldn't do that.

~ . ~

Lori sat at the base of Sophia's tiny grave, faintly smelling a decaying scent. Tears met her eyes, but refused to do what Lori needed to do the most—fall. "Sophia, little girl. No one here is perfect. But a lot of us are at fault here. Rick didn't mean for you to die. He cared about finding you so much. He looked for you so much, but he couldn't find you," She turned her head for a second and shook it, before returning back to the grave. "But," She said, her voice wavering, "We all cared for you so much and we want to see your smiling face...Carl is so broken without you, but we're going to make it through and believe me...we're going to make those steps into being better, perfect.

But to Lori, as the days grew into weeks without Sophia, she knew the only perfect there was Sophia herself.

And she was gone.

**A\N I really didn't know what to think about this one, so tell me what you think, and who you want next time! ^.^**


	7. Rick: Trust

**A\N So hey there! It is currently 7:59 in the morning, I should be in school, and I feel like shit...**

**Happy Tuesday! :D**

**So, I have this weird swollen eye and my stomach and head hurts, so I'm not going to school, so I get to write more! Woo!**

**To Serethiel96, Thanks, I couldn't stand Lori for a while because I thought she was being unfair to Shane and Rick, but now I like her more! ^.^**

**Also to jaded 79, Oh I misinterpreted it then! No worries! :D Haha, I'm going to die if they don't get together in the next episode! Thank you, Lori just seems way too perfect you know? Yeah, she slept with her husband's best friend, but other than that, she just seemed fake. So thank you! ^.^**

**And to Auds1978, First, hi and welcome! And thank you, I made you like her more...WOO! :D**

**So here is our main hunk! (Besides Daryl, of course!)**

_**Rick**_

Being a police officer put you on the line everyday. One minute you're enjoying a meal with your family, then next, you're facing criminals. The people you're trying to save, they depend on you, they trust you to save them. Sometimes you can, and sometimes you can't.

And when you can't, that's the hardest part.

It was Rick's second day in the group as they were trying to talk some sense into Daryl. Rick sat against a tree to relax for a few minutes before taking charge. There was a light, comforting breeze in the air that calmed his senses, and made him relax almost instantly. He heard a few scuffles , but he didn't hear moaning so he knew it wasn't a walker. His eyes fluttered open and averted to where the sound was making its debut. Sophia sat down in front of him and saw he had his shirt open. The redness of his wound was still there, but no blood was coming out, the stitches held nice.

"Did it hurt?" Sophia asked, looking at the ground like she was being to invasive and protruding. Rick knew what she meant and an airy smile came to his face.

"Naw, I couldn't even feel it," He lied, putting on his best smile. He didn't want to scare her more than anything, but he hated lying to her young, innocent, truthful face. Sophia seemed to buy this, but still sat staring at it, almost intrigued by it.

"Were you scared?" She questioned, looking him dead in the eyes. He pondered this for a moment, trying to step back into his shoes of the past and fit together all the broken pieces of that horrible time.

"Yeah," He said faintly, "I was scared I wasn't going to see my family again," Sophia looked at him, then turned her head where Carl was. A light smile etched her face as she stared until she turned back to Rick and eyed him. She observed the larger man, taking everything about him in.

"Do you trust Carl?" She finally asked, narrowing her eyes. Rick was taken aback by this question and was at a loss of words. She took this complete silence as a 'No' and nodded her head thoughtfully. "I knew you didn't," She said softly, "I do though, he said that you're going to leave again," Rick sat up straighter at this, getting ready to protest.

"Now wait a minute, just who said I was leaving?" He asked, feeling a bit of anger rise in him.

"Carl said you were gonna leave again so you could find Mr. Dixon. But I know we'll be okay, Carl said he can save me," She nodded, confirming this, and searched for Rick's eyes.

"We haven't decided yet. But that can wait, Sophia. Look, I know Carl is your friend, but he's your age, he can't protect you. He's still a boy and in this world, little boys just can't save anyone," Sophia's pretty, petite face was full of disgust at that moment, just as Rick finished his sentence.

"Well this isn't the world anymore," She hissed, "I think anyone can save anyone. And I _know _Carl can save me. I trust him, and I don't know why you don't. He's your son, why don't you trust him?" Rick thought about this, trying to see exactly why he didn't.

"He's just a little boy," He whispered, shaking his head.

"That's not a reason! You need trust to live Rick! If you don't trust anyone, then you're not a good leader, husband, father, or person! Especially since the world is filled with zombies, you need trust people and if you don't, then this group is going to die one by one all because you won't trust anyone!" Sophia was having a bit of trouble catching her breath, but she never looked away from Rick's eyes. She was courageous for yelling that to Rick and as Rick sat there, speechless, he knew she wasn't going to back off until he gave her an answer.

"I just can't trust anyone right now, Sophia. I'm a police officer. People depend on _me_, not the other way around. I save them, and tell them that everything's going to be alright. I don't need to trust anyone, because I know what I'm doing," This somehow didn't satisfy Sophia.

"You _were_ a police officer. This isn't a world where criminals are killing people. This is a world where _zombies _are killing people. You can't hand-cuff and arrest them and you can't take them to court. They pop out of nowhere and kill people, and if you don't trust anyone, then you're going to die. And in case that you forgot, Carl told me you were shot by a sneaky third shooter that no one knew about. If that happens again, and you're bit by a sneaky zombie, you can't get better, you're going to die," Sophia didn't wait for him to say something. She picked herself up and left Rick to contemplate this alone.

When he made it back that night from his expedition from Atlanta with the others, he saw Carl protecting Sophia with his body as they searched desperately for Lori and Shane.

And he knew, she was right.

~ . ~

"Sophia," Rick managed to squeeze out of his collapsing throat, as tears swept his face completely, leaving him a blubbery mess for a moment, "You were right. We need trust in this world. This group is gone, broken, like Dale had said. Carl has no one to trust anymore, because you're gone...he doesn't even trust me. Lori trusts me, Glenn does. Maggie trusts Glenn, Andrea trusted Dale, and your mom trusts Daryl. But me...I don't trust anyone. _Still_. I don't trust anyone. I'm so sorry that you're gone...because you trusted me...and I failed you," Rick walked away, feeling Lori's arms wrap around him as he went to make another decision he _himself,_ didn't even trust.

Sophia had depended on him, had trusted him, but the foundation of trust in their group was gone.

**A\N Hey! So I hope you liked this one! Haha, it didn't end like most did, you know where the character had a revelation! WOO! Change!**

**I hope you liked it!**

**Carl's next! :D**

**'Til next time! ^.^**


	8. Carl: Brave

**A\N Hi! ^.^ So I just took this big ass test today and I'm exhausted!**

**And I'm sorry for being late :(**

**To jaded79, Thank you, I feel a LOT better now :) I think it would be harder to lose Sophia than Dale because she was the same age as Carl, the same thing could have happened to him, but if you feel that way, then I support your logic! :)**

**Also to Morgan-Eats-Cannibals, Glorious? Thanks! I miss Sophia too! :'(**

**Disclaimer: You know the drill :P**

**Tonight is the last episode! :D and :'( Ahh, I hope there are MANY Caryl moments ^.^**

**Here we go! :D**

_**Carl**_

Carl was always proud of himself every time a thunderstorm came. When he was little, he was always afraid lightening would strike him, but then he realized if he was indoors they couldn't get to him. Then, Carl was brave.

Sophia trudged over to Carl with an unhappy look upon her face. Carl loved it when Sophia spent time with him, it made him unconditionally happy and warm. He noticed her look and set down a stick he had been playing with.

"What's wrong?' Sophia's eyes were red and filled with tears. She had just returned from her fight with Rick, something she didn't intend on letting Carl know.

"Nothing," She mumbled, sitting down in the soft grass. The soft breeze had returned and cooled some of her steam off, or at least that's what Carl thought. Carl was skeptical of her last statement, but kept quiet and sat down with her, basking in the warm sun and slight breeze. He peered over and saw her eyes were wet with tears threatening to fall.

"It's okay if you need to cry," He soothed a bit awkwardly. Sophia was really his only true girl that was a friend. When the world ended, he had just escaped the world full of 'cooties' and when he met the blonde, he was a bit afraid to catch her cooties, but he had become brave again, and knew she was just like him, and pretty soon she was his best friend. Sophia shook her head vigorously.

"I don't need to cry," She insisted, hiding her face. Carl studied her for a minute before smiling.

"Yeah you do, but if you don't want to, it's okay," Sophia felt her tears emerge on her face, and she silently reprimanded herself. Carl breathed out deeply.

"I need to cry. I've been sad lately, all my friends are dead, grandma, grandpa, even my teachers, are all gone," Sophia looked at him with her tears out in the open and she wrapped her skinny arms around his narrow shoulders.

"I won't leave you, I promise. I'm sad, too. The thing is, all the adults seem so okay with this, but we're not, are we?" She felt herself become over-come with tears and she squeaked, trying to stop them. "I want to be brave like mommy, and like you," Carl gaped at her, looking like he was hit with a ton of bricks. He felt a strange sensation course through him, as he stared at the exceptionally embarrassed Sophia.

"I'm not brave," He gasped, feeling tears of his own, "I'm scared everyday. Dad is brave, he's a police officer, he saves people, I don't,"

"You were the one who said you would protect me," Sophia snapped, "You can't chicken out now. I trust you a lot, Carl," Carl felt angry at this.

"I don't have to protect you!" He yelled at her, his face red with anger, "I'm not obligated to save anyone but myself!" He immediately felt guilty as he shouted at the gentle girl, his best friend. Carl began to apologize before Sophia leaned forward, her tears just faint streaks on her cheeks.

"You said you would, though! That meant something because I'm so terrified that I'm gonna die, and you told me that you were gonna protect me, so sorry that I wanted to feel _safe_!" She shrieked, her voice shrill and broken.

"Maybe I lied! I don't know if I'm brave enough to face those walkers! What if I see my old teacher, or my friend? Then what do I do? What if there's never going to be a cure? Stop depending on me, I don't have enough courage to even look at them in the face!" Sophia shook her head quite disdainfully with a sadistic smile on her face.

"I'm not asking you to be brave, I'm asking you to tell me right now that I'm gonna be fine! Do you think Mommy can? She can't! She's taking all of Daddy's abuse so he doesn't hurt me! _She_ doesn't even know if I'm gonna be fine, and Daddy never held me in his life! He'll never comfort me! You're my best friend! I just wanted to feel protected!" Sophia finally hid her face, feeling terrible. "I just wanted to live one day of my life whether it had zombies or not, without fear," Tears entered her eyes again, and this time she let them fall mercilessly, as she broke down in front of Carl. He took a deep breath and grabbed Sophia's small face into his hands.

"Okay," He said. "I'll protect you no matter what," Sophia smiled and her face lit up as her tears etched her face.

"Promise?" She sniffled. Carl didn't answer, instead he closed their gap and kissed her gently. He pulled back and smiled. Sophia smiled back with a toothy grin.

The kiss sucked, but he was brave enough to do it.

And that was a start.

~ . ~

Her grave was surrounded by lush greens and Carl hated it. It seemed Grey and lifeless and that was everything Sophia wasn't. He crossed his legs and stared at the pathetic grave stone Glenn had made for her. "Sophia, I really miss you. I'm sorry that Dad didn't save you, and I'm sorry I couldn't look for you more. You were my best friend and more than anything I wanted to keep my promise. I really wanted to be brave for you..." He had to stop for a moment, to compose himself. "Dad and Shane say it wasn't my fault that Dale died, but it was. I wanted to kill a walker because I thought if I did, you'd be proud, you'd come back, you'd live again, but I ended up killing him," He looked up to the sky and sighed. "I'm sorry for calling your mom an idiot...but mostly, I'm sorry I couldn't tell you the truth. That I'm just a chicken, that I will never be able to save anyone," He got up and left, feeling awful.

Carl just didn't know that he had done the bravest thing in his life.

He told the truth.

**A\N I hope this one was a good'n! ^.^ Please review and tell me what you thought!**

**The best is next! ;)**

**See ya my lovelies! **


	9. Daryl: Life

**A\N Hey there! ^.^**

**Ahh! The finale was soo good! Carol was kinda a bitch, no offense, I mean I love her and all, but I don't know...but there were cute Caryl moments! Maybe some story ideas there!**

**M'kay so this chapter is the one everyone's been waiting for!**

**To Serethiel96, Thank you! I really miss Sophia as well, and its okay if you miss an update, don't worry! I loved writing their kiss! ^.^ I think Carl killed Dale, personally. I've always hated Carl, and Dale was one of my favorites, so that kinda increased the hate! xD I think they're trying to make him grow up too fast, you're right, he should have grieved for Sophia more :P**

**Also to Abovetherim, Thank you! I hate Shane and Andrea, but if you liked the chapters then I'm really happy!**

**And to Crimson Fingertips, Thank you! I truly love writing this story and writing for all the characters ^.^**

**Also to Salvatore, Thank you! Well here's the chapter and there were a few really cute Caryl moments in there! :D**

**Finally to jaded79, I really wish they kill off Sophia, she was too cute! Thank you, and your reason about Dale was right too, he probably felt so guilty about not siding with him, and then the poor man died! :'(**

**So here it is!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own this, I suck, blah blah freakity blah!**

**Here it is! ^.^**

_**Daryl**_

Maybe God hated Daryl, maybe he was pissed because he never bothered going to church. Whatever the case was, karma or God, Daryl Dixon had a terrible life. His father made him feel like the worst piece of shit in the world, and Merle didn't help. His Momma died when he was seven years old. Doctor said she died of cancer.

Daryl thought it was depression.

Life seemed utterly pointless to Daryl. No, he'd never thought of suicide, but if there was so much pain and remorse, why bother? Daryl really didn't have a reason. He glided through life, mindlessly did everything Merle ordered him to do, everything his Papa wanted him to do, and everything he felt they'd like him to do. But that changed, when he met two people that changed his life.

Sophia was small to him, and he thought he was going to crush her the first time he saw her. She was the only one he didn't glare at, and he didn't know why. Merle told him glaring initiated a fight, and fights were good. That way Daryl could prove he wasn't a pussy. But when Sophia was around him, he found his stance to be less menacing and his scowl was a bit softer than normal.

"Mr. Dixon?" A soft, squeaky voice asked. Daryl almost didn't hear it. He stepped away from his tent, as he was just about to head off with Rick, the black guy (Daryl didn't bother to learn his name), and Glenn. He looked about her, his scowl new on his face, and his clothes clean.

"What?" He snapped, scaring the girl a bit. Her small stance faltered as she looked up at him with an intrigued look upon her face. Daryl hated how little and scrawny she was, he hated that with one push of a finger, he could easily knock her down. It made him wonder if he was ever that tiny, his memories of his life were always filled with him mercilessly beating someone, or him getting mercilessly beat up. He was strong. She had a childhood.

"Will you do somethin' for me?" She asked quietly, not looking into his narrowed eyes. He scoffed and sadistically smiled at her.

"Why the hell do ya think yur so special?" He hissed, his spit full of disdain as he spewed the cold words to her. She looked crushed, but she didn't leave, which surprised Daryl. He had never talked to a kid before, and now here she was in front of him, not backing away.

"I don't, but I think...well..." She struggled for words as she fidgeted with her fingers. Her focus was on the ground, not wanting to look in his eyes. Like Daryl was ugly, a monster.

And to him, he was.

"I don't think I'm special...I just think you're nicer than you give yourself credit for...and I just need a favor," She whispered, her eyes were no longer at the supportive ground, but they were staring straight into Daryl's. He was taken aback by her request and her statement.

"Like hell I'm nice," He spat, shaking his head, "My life was focused 'round two things. Merle and fightin'. Merle taught me ev'rything. From eatin', to defenin' myself. He ain't nice, he beat me up and made me feel like the worst piece of shit in the world, but that's how I got tough, that's why I fight," Though his words were full of pride and the gleam in his eye was set on his statement, his face wasn't into it. It look distressed, hurt, angry...or at least to Sophia.

"You fight 'cause you're tough?" Sophia questioned, cocking her head, "If you are so tough, then you wouldn't put up with Merle! He's mean!"

"Don't ya dare act like you know 'im! I do!" Daryl shouted back, taking a step towards her. She didn't tremor with fear like Daryl had hoped she would. Instead, she held her ground, fierce and sure of herself, though the fear was clear as day on her face.

"I do! He's selfish, piggish, and mean!" She insisted, her bright face turning a deep red. Daryl felt his face reciprocate as her words were ringing the truth and were deteriorating his ears with each syllable and sound. He tried to hide his anger, for the sake of her, but this was his brother, this was _his _life.

"You don't know a fuckin' thing 'bout 'im! You have yur perfect little family, and I have Merle and my Papa!" His fists were clenched and at any moment, he knew they'd swing and he would hate himself for hitting a small, vulnerable little girl. He didn't see her tears on her face, but he heard the soft squeaks and hiccups.

"My family is not perfect!" She cried out, almost like she had to, to get her point across. Daryl couldn't miss the pain and agony in her usual chipper, sweet soprano. "I know Merle because my Daddy is like Merle. He's rude and mean and he only care about himself. He hits Mommy and...and me. I know my Daddy," She breathed out slowly, still looking Daryl dead in the eye, "I know Merle," He just looked at her, not knowing how to react to her words, but his anger was seeping down and he was glad it didn't resort to violence.

"I love Merle, but I hate him. He's the only thing I got. He was my life and I'm jus' like him so ya might as well add me to yur 'Douche bag of the Century' list," He said distastefully, his face mirroring his words. Sophia had a slight smile and looked up at him with almost...admiration.

"You're nothing like him, Mr. Dixon," She reassured him, "You're quiet and nice. You protect us and though you always seem like you wanna kill someone, you don't...I really think yur nice...at least, nice than Daddy will ever be," He was beyond flattered for her words, maybe even grateful. But fuck the world if _anyone_ thought he was going to be a pussy and tell her that. Instead, he looked at her long and hard.

"So, what's yur favor?" He asked, his stance loosening. She seemed to relax at this and smiled brightly.

"I was wondering if you would keep Mommy safe from Daddy. You're the only one that can. Shane hurt him real bad, but I know you'd do a better job than him. You'd keep _Mommy_ safe, not yourself for selfish reasons like Shane...so please Mr. Dixon?"

"Call me Daryl," He growled. She giggled sweetly and nodded.

"Okay, Daryl," Daryl never answered her question, but he did. When the walkers came, he pushed her roughly out of the way from a particularly fast one. He searched for her everyday at camp when they searched for Sophia and he desperately held on to her when Sophia emerged, because he wanted to keep that promise. And because Daryl Dixon broke Sophia's rule to the favor. He held on to Carol because he knew she was more to him than just another group member. She was him now, and he was determined as hell to keep her.

He already lost one of the most important women in his life.

He didn't need to lose another.

~ . ~

Daryl didn't do much praying in his life. He didn't go to his mother's grave, and he was set on not going to Sophia's, but he was so confused on how exactly Carol got him to diligently follow her to Sophia's grave. Her face was full of compassion and life when she wanted to visit her grave, Daryl just couldn't say no, he couldn't crush Carol's spirit like that. When they sat in front of her grave, Carol prayed, her eyes squeezed shut and her hands going white with how much force she put into her hands in the folded position.

He awkwardly sat before it and silently said something, '_Little girl. You were the strangest thing I've ever met in my life. I risked my life for you, 'cause I couldn't afford to forget my promise to you...and I shoulda told you, that I would die to save you too, not jus' yur Momma. But, I'm gonna save Carol now, Lord knows I'll die if she does. I've gotten in too deep with her, I'm feeling shitty things all 'cause you needed a favor. But...I ain't regretful of our talk, and I sure as hell ain't regrettin' meetin' yur Momma. I guess what I'm sayin' is, I'm gonna keep the promise I made to you. You and your Momma were the best thing that happened to me in this shitty world. So rest little girl, I'm gonna save her,"_

As Carol gave him a watery smile, he pulled her close and let her cry in him as he stared upon the grave knowing he'd save Carol's life way before he'd ever save his. Maybe it was because he made a promise to a little girl, or perhaps his life was so shitty, there wasn't a point in saving it. Whatever it was, he knew one thing.

God had a cruel way of making someone's life shitty and taking such a bright little girl's...

Too soon. 

**A\N I hope you liked it! :D Next chapter is Momma Bear's...and the last one! :'( There are so many things I wanna say about this story, but I'll wait until the next chapter!**

**Please review and tell me what you think! ^.^**

**'Til next time! :)**


	10. Carol: Love

**A\N Hey! Wow, this is the last chapter :'( I'll say more at the bottom, but for now, this is going to be happy!**

**So, to Serethiel96, Thank you, I would have loved to see their relationship as well! It seemed they would have been close, not like father and daughter, but like a mentor and a student :) Thank you, and I'm so depressed that this is the last time I'll be writing to you like this! :(**

**And to jaded79, I love Daryl and Carol as well! I know, I'm glad Carol is finally standing her own on the show and I hope she will stick up for more in the third season ^.^ I am also sad that this will be long over when the new season arrives, but hopefully I shall have written more by then :)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own this and stuffly so stop having a cow! :P**

**Question: Which of these chapters was your favorite? I'm not being conceited, I just want to know that maybe I could write for one of these characters in the future.**

**Mine was Dale's because I love him and miss him! :'(**

**Okay, all the sentimental stuff is down below and stuff after the story, but let's read the story before the author's note, shall we? ^.^**

_**Carol**_

Carol knew her life was lacking something before she had Sophia. At first, she thought it was adventure, then a purpose, but then she realized, she was missing the most important thing in life itself.

Love.

She never actually felt true love until she had Sophia, until she was so overcome by the love for this little creation she had made. Ed was nice enough to date and marry, but his true nature shown through, and she knew Sophia was the only source of she knew, and was ever to have.

And that's what broke her heart.

Carol was quietly doing laundry with Lori when Sophia bounded up to her mother with a thousand watt smile. Lori looked at Sophia with a surprised look as she had never seen so much enthusiasm spew out of the girl unless she was with Carl. Carol was happy to see her daughter smile so wholeheartedly and set down Daryl's shirt as gently as she could.

"Hi sweetie, why're you so happy?" She asked, looking for answer in her face. Sophia discreetly looked at Lori with a 'Can you leave like, now?' Look. Lori understood and awkwardly said something about Rick. As soon as she was out of sight, Sophia squealed happily.

"Mommy, Carl kissed me!" She cheered, jumping. Carol gaped at her before a wide smile reached her face as she pulled her daughter close.

"Oh Sophia, that's great!" Once the initial excitement died down, they sat together, basking in the warm sun together. Sophia looked suddenly older to Carol, seeing as she had her first kiss. Her blonde hair shimmered in the light that made Carol's heart swell with utter elatedness. Carol felt old at that moment, but she was too proud to care.

"Hey Mommy, when did you have your first kiss?" Sophia questioned aloud, staring upon her mother. Carol pondered this and felt her heart sink a bit.

"When I met Ed. I wasn't exactly _popular_ with the guys in high school. So I was twenty-three when I had my first kiss, then," She declared, with the up-most dignity she could muster. Sophia looked terribly guilty for a slight moment before whipping her head back up.

"Mommy, were you in love with Daddy?" Sophia stared at her expectantly as Carol peered over to their tent. When she met him, he was lean and fit, he sweet and kind to her, but nothing special, so she often questioned herself this, it only seemed fitting that her daughter would. She sighed, letting her uncertainty rain out in front of her.

"I think...I was in love with the idea of being in love," She confessed, almost hanging her head in shame. "Ed was kind enough to me, and I had never experienced love before and...I convinced myself that if I stayed with Ed long enough, I'd feel love," Tears stung her eyes as she continued, "But when he proposed, I wasn't overjoyed like all my friends said I would be, I just said, 'Yes,' and that was it. I didn't understand why Ed wasn't the one for me, but I just kept saying, my feelings would change, and...they never did," Carol shook her head, wishing she would have left Ed such a long time ago. "So much of my time has been wasted just waiting to feel unconditional love,"

"So you've never felt love?" Sophia's eyes widened and she looked completely crushed for her mother.

Carol chuckled out a few tears and then felt sobs go through her, feeling her body convulse with sobs and weeps.

"I wasn't happy! I was content, I was okay, but that was just a year into the marriage..." Carol trailed off and Sophia immediately knew where it was heading. A sick twist of her stomach came as she watched her mother's happiness writhe before her. "Ed started to become rude, started to criticize me, and pretty soon it was just plain out cruel. He told me he hated me, that I was pathetic and little by little I began to believe him. Then he started pinching me, then tapping me harshly, then hitting and smacking me. Then the punching, the whippings, and...and the all out beatings," She managed to choke out the last part before a chortled cry escaped her mouth. "Finally I was just about to leave him, when I found out I was pregnant with you,"

"Was I a mistake?" Sophia interrupted, the hurt clear in her voice. Carol enveloped the little one in her rather thin arms.

"Goodness no," She gasped. They stayed in the position for what seemed like an eternity. Sophia molded perfectly into Carol's scrawny body as they sat there in comfortable silence. "I was so overjoyed when I found out I was having you, but I knew Ed wanted a child, and I don't know why, but I thought if I had you, he'd be kind again and nice, he'd be a good father. But instead, he grew more wretched and vile. But I stayed for you, because I love you. Because I really love you," Sophia was horribly furious with her mother's confession as she pulled away harshly, not giving a warning.

"He hurts you! Me? That's not a reason to stay!" Sophia yelled, feeling her tears break free from her eyes. "Why did you stay with him after he started hurting you? You're not dumb..." Sophia tried to work this out through her head, or so it seemed, while Carol was still comprehending her words. She sat there for God knows how long, until she averted her head up and flickered her eyes to her daughter who at that moment seemed so conflicted.

"I really thought he loved me, and that if he said that, I would feel the same way and I just thought that he had a sick, twisted illness that caused him to hurt those he loved, but he never stopped, and I was foolin' myself. But I stayed..."

"_Why_?" Sophia shrieked.

"The day you went to Madeline's house," Carol breathed, her mind rewinding to the dark clouds rippling over the skies and Sophia out of sight, "The day that that terrible storm came, Ed came home and was lookin' for you, sayin' he wanted to spend some..._alone time_," Carol had to stop as the words tasted horrible and sour in her mouth, "w-with you. I knew what he meant and I finally realized, he was a monster, such a terrible, terrible monster. So, I told him to stay away from you and that I was gonna leave him. He grabbed a knife and he hurt me, but what he said," Carol shuddered, before continuing, "He said he would torture and kill you if I tried to leave you. So I stayed because I love you more than anything in the world," Sophia sniffled as she gawked at her mother with such an incredulous look upon her features.

"Didn't Grandma and Grandpa know?" Carol shook her head and smiled cruelly.

"Yes, they did, but they didn't care, no one did. I had no love in my life. Except you, Sophia. I hope you can forgive me," Carol gave her a weak smile as she composed herself.

"Yeah, Mommy, I can," With that, Sophia let her mother go back to folding everyone's laundry as she made her expedition over to a certain 'Redneck'.

Carol watched as Sophia stalked away, seeming older than Carol was herself. She smiled and was more than proud of her daughter.

And her love just kept growing.

~ . ~

Carol sat in comfortable silence just looking upon Sophia's grave. A small smile crept upon her face as she opened one eye to see Daryl's eyes closed and his mouth soundlessly moving with words. She closed her eyes again and folded her petite hands in her lap.

"_Sophia, I miss you more than anything in this universe. I'm sorry I couldn't go to your formal funeral, but I'm here now. I hope Ed isn't there, he doesn't deserve to be, but I hope you are happy and safe. Right now things are okay, people are still tense, but we're making it through. You know, Carl is so lonely without you, and everyone here all miss you. I love you so much and I'm going to keep livin' for you...and as for Daryl Dixon, Sophia I know this was because of you. Don't think I didn't see you, when you asked him for a favor. You're sneaky, Sophia, but you were still young. I do...I do love him deeply, trust me, but he will never be you, he will never fill your very small shoes. Sophia, I love you so much and I will do you good,"_

Carol felt herself smile as best she could and Daryl stuffed her into his shirt for some sort of comfort he could muster to give her. And that was okay for now.

She had Daryl, and she still had the love for Sophia, one that she would mourn about and never be able to sleep soundly again, but one she never regretted, and one she'll never forget.

Sophia was dead, but her love was still alive and strong.

**A\N Wow, this story is over! :'( I know it was an easy story to write, but I'm really going to miss it! I loved writing for every character and every perspective. The hardest to write for me, was Glenn's. He's such a happy, enthusiastic character, and it was just hard to see him with deep-rooted problems. So thank you to all my reviewers! ^.^**

**jaded79**

**Serethiel96**

**ResidentGoth**

**vmg**

**CriminalMindsWhore**

**Morgan-eats-cannibals**

**Salvatore**

**Auds1978**

**Abovetherim**

**And to**

**Crimson Fingertips**

**The reviews meant a lot, and I loved reading them! **

**But, a very special thank you goes to jaded79 and Serethiel96 because they reviewed every chapter (minus one exception :D) and their reviews were always so sweet and helpful!**

**So thank you to everyone and I hope I will see you all soon with a new story and if you wanna talk, PM me ^.^**

**'Til next time!**


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